Can someone please describe for me the differences and how they work between something like a CS Dot, which has material added to the underside of the center of the head vs a PS3, which has material added to the underside of the perimeter of the head? Let's assume both are coated.

Can someone please describe for me the differences and how they work between something like a CS Dot, which has material added to the underside of the center of the head vs a PS3, which has material added to the underside of the perimeter of the head? Let's assume both are coated.

Thanks!

Overtones tend to come from the rim of the head, probably has to do with sound reflection from the shell. Perimeter muffling (like a Powerstroke's ring, or an overlay ring) will cut down on overtones. Doubling down on the center (where stick attack mostly happens) gives projection like a 2-ply head without the dampening on the perimeter.

To add on to Al's post- basically, a powerstroke will give you a shorter note and deaden your ghost notes if they're on the edge. A CS will thicken your center sound (though IMO they decrease the volume subtly, since they are technically muffling the head) while still leaving all the overtones around the edge- even accentuating them since you have less lower tones from the center to balance out the spread.